2012-13 Women's Hoops Outlook: Point Guards

Emily Frazier (left) and Reagan Miller (right) have each served as Liberty's starting point guard for a full season.

As the Liberty women's basketball team prepares for its Nov. 9 season opener at Duquesne, LibertyFlames.com will provide a four-part preview of the 2012-13 season. Today's article provides a look at the Lady Flames' quartet of point guards.

Incumbent point guard Emily Frazier suffered a season-ending injury less than two weeks before the 2011-12 season opener, leaving then-freshman Reagan Miller as Liberty's only true point guard on the roster. Thus, Miller was forced to carry a heavy work load, playing a school-record 1,086 minutes (average of 32.9/game) on the season. Miller responded to the unexpected challenge admirably, as Green observed, "Reagan experienced testing by fire last season and showed the heart of a champion."

This time around, Miller should have considerably more company at the floor general spot, in the form of fellow Texans Frazier and Sadalia Ellis, a freshman. All three players bring different skill sets to the position and are expected to battle for playing time.

Now a redshirt sophomore, Frazier was projected as Liberty's starting point guard last season, after making 30 starts as a freshman. She earned a spot on the 2011 Big South All-Freshman team, after dishing out a team-high 85 assists and shooting a team-best 41.7 percent from three-point range.

"It's great to have Emily back and healthy," Green said. "She displays a great basketball IQ and the ability to score from three-point range while seeing the floor well and distributing the ball. She will be an invaluable part of our team because of her experienced presence on the floor."

Miller earned Big South All-Freshman team accolades of her own last season, thanks to a team-high 131 assists and 56 three-pointers. She stepped up in some of the Lady Flames' biggest games, including a 15-point, eight-assist effort in the Big South Championship title contest against High Point.

"Reagan returns after an exceptional freshman year," observed Green. "She has the ability to score from deep range while having the vision to distribute the ball to both the post and perimeter. Last year's experience, along with her leadership, will be important to the team's success this year."

Ellis comes to Liberty after helping Cypress Falls High School go 103-10 during her final three seasons with the team. The 5-6 point guard was named District 17-5A Defensive Player of the Year as a senior, while notching 10.0 ppg, 6.8 apg, 5.0 spg, 3.1 rpg and 0.9 bpg. She also displayed her athletic ability in track & field, high jumping 5-7 and long jumping 18-8.

"Sadalia brings high energy and understanding of team concepts while quarterbacking at the point guard position," explained Green. "The daughter of a coach, she understands the game very well. Sadalia is capable of getting to the rim in an exceptional way and finishing, as well as scoring from three-point range. We expect her to continue to develop into an impact player who will provide a very bright future for our team."

The most recent addition to the team, Julia Winn will also add depth at the point guard spot. Winn, who is the shortest player on the roster at 5-4, helped Littleton High School win the New Hampshire state title as a senior. She averaged 13.4 ppg a year ago and became just the fourth female in school history to tally 1,000 career points.

"Julia comes from a tremendously strong high school program and is best characterized as being a champion," offered Green. "She is a cerebral player who understands team concepts and strategies very well. Julia is also exceptional at making difficult mid-range jumpers."